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Caitlin Rigby and her Etherial Reflections

By:Erin Stobie

3 years ago

What’s a portrait without a face? Is it a portrait? Or it is something else altogether? In any case, Australian artist Caitlin Rigby’s new show Reflection, due to open in just a few days at Off The Kerb, is an interesting and subversive look at portraiture and identity.

Courtesy of Caitlin Rigby. All Rights Reserved.

Rigby’s free formed works are a serene field of blues and earth-tones, organic and gentle, which offer an introspective look into identity and a new perspective on the age-old art form of portraiture. The paintings feel very Australian, without a whisper of kitsch-ness, all the while maintaining a very definite sense of Rigby and her artistic identity.

It’s a lovely thing, to see a young artist with such a bright and confident vision who can blaze such a unique trail, and so it was a pleasure to get to chat with Caitlin recently about her upcoming exhibition:

Courtesy of Caitlin Rigby. All Rights Reserved.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Caitlin Rigby: I’m a visual artist currently based in Melbourne. I have been painting from my city studio for the last year and created this new body of works during the months of Autumn and Winter. I grew up in leafy green Brisbane, but have called Melbourne home for a long time now. Painting is my favourite place to be or swimming in the ocean.

How did ‘Reflection’ come about, and what are some of the inspirations behind the show?

I really wanted to bring together a body of works for a solo show that captured and fulfilled a lot of the ideas I have been painting for the past year or two. I am really interested in creating portraits where the face remains empty, yet the character still feels complete in their existence. I am inspired by the idea of the unseen beauty surrounding us that makes up who we are.

Courtesy of Caitlin Rigby. All Rights Reserved.

Can you tell us a little bit about some of the pieces in the show — and are they all paintings? Or is it mixed media?

All the pieces in the show are paintings on stretched canvas. I have used gouache mixed with acrylic painting medium which has been a new exploration for me. I love the opaque quality of the pigment in the gouache and how well it spreads on the surface. Usually my works are predominately set onto white canvas backgrounds or papers, however I have been experimenting with coloured background surfaces in my new works. I have found as a result of this process I can create a different tonal appearance with the same colour palette.

I get the impression that you draw a lot of inspiration from Aboriginal art; there’s elements of dot-painting present in some of the works in ‘Reflection’, for instance. Is that a fair assumption? And could you tell us a little bit more about how and why you’re drawn to Aboriginal art and practices?

I began using dots in some of my paintings a few years ago and have explored them in a lot more detail in my painting process for ‘Reflection’. I spent over a year living in the Sunshine Coast hinterland forest, from 2014 into 2015 and I really connected with my experiences living closer to nature. My work started to in-corporate more organic shapes and symbols at this time and I drew heavily into more abstract techniques to develop the presence of my characters.

There seems to be quite a few different techniques present in each of your works. Could you tell us a little bit about your process?

My process is strongly free-formed and organic. I always start with a similar gestural form of a portrait and from there i can lose myself in the process of painting itself and let the work appear. This create’s a level of unpredictability to the outcome of a painting. Some works are formed with a few simple brush-strokes, where-as others I can labor over for weeks, building up layers and embellishments.

Courtesy of Caitlin Rigby. All Rights Reserved.

Is the idea of empty, faceless, portraiture a theme you’ve explored before? And if so, how did that work inform or impact this new show? Is ‘Reflection’ a progression of your exploration of the theme?

Yes, I have been painting faceless portraits for a few years now. I have found it very fulfilling to paint in this style and wanted to dedicate an exhibition to this theme and my new show does this. The portraits in ‘Reflection’ are a lot more detailed and have a stronger visible connection with nature, especially leaves.

A lot of your catalogue focuses on portraiture, in one form or another. Where does that fascination stem from?

My art focuses on exploring a language of emotions that can be recognised through the simple gestural shape of a portrait, which then allows the viewer and myself to engage deeper into the flowing expression and existence of this image. I am fascinated with how we can feel the presence of someone from the use of a simple portrait shape, even when you’ve left out so many features. I have always liked to create characters and faces. My art is an escape from the reality of faces and my own reflection. I realised I could create my own people to look at and connect with and who could express feelings I wasn’t able to in reality and could become my voice that I wanted to share.

Is there any special significance to the colours you use in your works, and in the portraits in ‘Reflection’, specifically? Because blues feature quite heavily with you, don’t they?

I do have a deep love for blue which is very noticeable in my works over the past few years. Colours are significant to me as my works are very emotionally driven so the colour palette is very important. Blue is very sad but also calming and has a stillness to it that i really like. For me it came about and appeared in my work as an emotional reaction to grief and loss and a way to connect with these feelings in my art. ‘Reflection’ I feel is a first break away from my solid blue works, with the incorporation of many warmer tones, this is a significant progression for me that I feel is a little about growing and letting go.

Courtesy of Caitlin Rigby. All Rights Reserved.

Is there any particular work, or a story behind one particular piece, that is a personal standout to you?

The process of painting for me is the story. I would say that the three large canvas paintings in the show stand-out for me the most. The amount of work that went into these larger pieces was huge and it really took a lot of my energy and focus. I haven’t worked simultaneously on so many paintings at once and because my process forms as I paint, the unpredictability can be both mentally torturing and simultaneously liberating. I am really looking forward to seeing them all installed and hanging together in the gallery next week.

What’s next for you?

Just to get back into the studio and keep working on some new paintings.

Many thanks to Caitlin for taking the time to chat with us.

Courtesy of Caitlin Rigby. All Rights Reserved.

Caitlin Rigby’s exhibition Reflection opens at Off The Kerb gallery on Friday September 9, from 6 ‘till 9pm. The show runs from September 8 – 22.

Off the Kerb is located at 66B Johnston Street in Collingwood, and is open from 12:30pm to 6pm Thursday – Friday, and 12pm to 5pm on Saturday + Sunday.

You can find more information about the gallery at their website: www.offthekerb.com.

You can see more from Caitlin Rigby and find more of her lovely art at her website: caitlinrigby.com, and follow her on Instagram: @caitlin_rigby.